What was the SOE?

The Special Operations Executive, or SOE, was formed in July 1940 as an organisation conducting covert missions behind enemy lines. Its agents were to help local resistance groups, perform acts of sabotage, and transmit information back to London via encoded messages.

The SOE established branches across the world

France was the largest SOE section: by 1944 over 400 men and women had been sent there. Agents arrived stealthily by plane, boat and even submarine; many parachuted in under the cover of darkness.

Agents were employed after their details were passed to the SOE. An officer would speak to the candidate and assess whether they were suitable for SOE work. If the person agreed to join, they had to sign the Official Secrets Act – vowing to tell no one about the nature of their work.

Although women were not allowed in ‘front line’ military jobs, SOE was the exception: they believed women agents were less conspicuous than men when moving around to meet people or carry messages, under the cover of daily errands like food shopping.